Author(s): David Ball

Fiction

Nico and Maria, a Maltese brother and sister are divided when Nico is abducted by Moorish slavers. Taken to North Africa to be the personal slave for one of the wealthiest slavers in Algeria, Nico becomes a pawn in the household politics raging between the slaver and his wife and is forced to escape and fend for himself from a young age. Maria, stranded in Malta with unsympathetic parents, makes her own plans to escape the island and find her brother. She joins a group of ex-Jews - forced by the Christians who rule the island to renounce their faith - who continue their rituals clandestinely. French aristocrat Christien de Vries has led a life of pomp and privilege and yearns to prove his worth as a Knight of St John. He is stationed in Malta as a new recruit and his appearance impacts on both Maria's and Nico's lives as they all try to survive the devastation caused by the infamous Siege of Malta.